Matteuccia struthiopteris ‘The King’
Matteuccia struthiopteris 'The King' is an extra tall form of the ostrich fern up to seven feet tall!
Ostrich fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris) is a native species across Canada made famous by New Brunswickers who collect the young emerging fiddleheads in early spring as a culinary delicacy. Boil or sautee and apply a healthy amount of butter (but don’t eat them raw). ‘The King’ is a cultivar that boasts a very tall 4-7 foot stance and a spread of 3 to 5 feet wide. A stately, ornamental fern with carefully positioned fronds forming an elegant upward-facing cone. Very cold hardy for most parts of Canada. Ostrich fern will eventually spread by underground rhizomes to form lush colonies. Requires evenly moist but not soggy soil. Spectacular in a woodland setting, by ponds, in the shady border and bed, mass planting and as a specimen. Deer and rabbit resistant. Often listed as hardy to zone 3 but likely hardy to zone 1 like the species.
Common Name: Ostrich Fern
Family: Dryopteridaceae (The Wood Fern Family)
Zone Hardiness: 1-9
Light: Full Shade, Part Shade
Height: 4-6'
Width: 3-5'
Primary Bloom Colour: Green
Secondary Bloom Colour: Green
Bloom Time:
Foliage Colour: Green
Class: Deciduous
Type: Perennial
Soil Moisture: Moist, Average, Wet
Stem Colour:
Fragrance: No
Berries:
Benefits:
Deer Resistant: Yes
BC Native: Yes
Native Habitat: Moist to wet sandy or silty banks of rivers and streams and alluvial forests in lowland and montane zones.
Award:
Geographical Origin: Europe and Western Russia, North America, North Central and Eastern Asia
